The Mass Effect epic
Generic as it might originally seem, Mass Effect must be the only game I haven’t played yet, that I’m truly interested in. The thing -according to the vast majority of reviews- is a decently written sci-fi RPG, that’s almost mature in tone, graphically impressive, obviously playable, probably addictive, definitely polished and allegedly vast in scope. It also seems that the Xbox 360 version of Mass Effect, in all its radiant glory, is one of the few true reasons (besides some truly shiny Xbox Live offerings, that is) hardcore PC gamers should be interested in Microsoft’s console. Well, until Mass Effect hits the PC at least, which apparently will be happening very very soon.
Happily, the XP/Vista version will be an above average port too, and one I’ll be definitely grabbing as soon as possible. It will -according to the recently published official fact sheet- include the same innovative -nay, ground breaking- dialog system, the Bring Down the Sky expansion, a new vastly improved tactical Heads-Up Display (HUD), new higher resolution visuals, a refined control scheme, proper save functionality, widescreen support, faster loading times and a brand new decryption mini-game, that reflects the shape and methodology of the Omni Decryption Tool. It will in a nutshell be a truly excellent port. Or so it seems…
Posted on May 27th, 2008 by konstantinos
RSS
I can save anywhere in the game on the 360, so I’m curious how they changed it. I’ll have to look it up.
It’s a strong story, though the richness of the different races and back stories attracted me. The different classes have a significant impact in several places: in fact, like some RPGs, you need certain team members to complete a quest. (I’m still stuck on the very last battle in part because of my team.)
The side quests are probably the greatest weakness in the game because, while are some are engagings, several are pretty thin, no to mention that the interiors are horribly redundant. Apparently, they have just one interior design in the future.
May 27th, 2008 at 6:44 amYou can save anywhere? Oops… Then it must be the quick-save quick-load functionality I guess, but really can’t be sure.
Hmmm… you don’t sound overly exited then… Strong story but.. it seems. Still, I’ll give it a try, if only to experience the dialogues. They seem so natural. Oh, and do give the Penny Arcade offering a demo try. It’s utterly smart. And beautiful.
May 27th, 2008 at 8:48 amDon’t get me wrong: I recommend the game. IBut enjoyed it greatly. I thought the main story was better than, say, Oblivion, but I’m something of a completist, so I was disappointed in the side quests. It’s not like Morrowind, where I could spend almost my time playing just side quests.
Unlike Oblivion and Morrowind, though, the minor characters seemed unique–different voices, different dialogs, characters. From that perspective, I think ME is about as richly populated as any modern RPG.
Playing the game almost felt like watching a movie. In some scenes, facial expression actually mattered. My wife was intrigued as one point and just watched me play.
I looked at the Penny Arcade demo last night on the 360. Unfortunately, I’m swamped with work for a couple of days and nights.
May 28th, 2008 at 3:50 pmSwamped. Yes, I’ll go with that too…
May 29th, 2008 at 3:48 am